Live It Up
by Niham
Summary: Life is too short to be anything but happy, because at one point, everything will be exactly as you wanted. A series of short Teddy drabbles containing some TeddyVictoire and SPOILERS! Complete for now.
1. Laugh when you can

**Live It Up**

**A/N:** Don't know why I'm writing this. I like Teddy's character, but I think I'm enjoying it because drabbles are so short. I finished four in one day! This chapter, is just the first, and it's my least favorite because it so pointless. The others were just plain fun to write. So leave a review if you can.

**Disclaimer:** I don't any of these characters. They belong to the Glorious and Much Praised JK Rowling, Goddess Among Children's Books. Oh, and the summary and title, and well, pretty much all of the chapter titles in this series, were inspired by an avatar I saw online. I thought, hey this would make a great fic. So, yeah, I don't own that either, enjoy!

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**Laugh When You Can**

Throughout his entire life, Teddy laughed whenever he could. When he laughed, he found that he could not feel the pain. It was a cure for both physical pain and heart wounds.

Teddy laughed whenever he tripped over his two feet, or an occasional broom stand.

At Hogwarts, Teddy laughed at the people who thought he might be bi because they thought that perhaps he might be able to change his gender.

Well, of course he could change his gender, he was a metamorphamagis, but why would he want to? His belonged to the child goddess, Victoire, and only Victoire, for Teddy imagined that she would be quite jealous if he started taking a likening to anyone besides her, male or female.

Teddy laughed at those people who spoke of such ridiculous things, and often said to the boys, "Do you fancy me that much?"

Teddy laughed at Al's gullibleness (once he told Al that gullible wasn't in the dictionary, and Rosie had looked it up just to prove it was and that make him laugh too).

He laughed at Uncle George's ear jokes, and at James' élan. He laughed at Ron's teasing and Hermione's, "RON!"

Teddy laughed at them because for a moment he failed to remember that they were not his, and he forgot that he lacked any right to call Ginny his mother and Ron his uncle.

On the day of his grandmother's funeral, Teddy changed his hair to a vibrant wine-red since that was her favorite color. When the elders dressed him down because of it (they said it was cruel to look so happy), Teddy laughed, shook his finger at them, and said with a smile, "Funerals are more for the living than the dead. My grandmother would have loved the color of my hair, so quite your sorrowful anthems you old black birds. She was a happy woman, and she deserves to be remembered with nothing but happiness."

For a moment, he did forget that she was gone.

The apartment Teddy rented was terribly quiet and in toto, quite lonely. Compared to living all those years at Harry and Ginny's house with their crazy kids, the apartment seemed a graveyard of aloneness.

So, to chase away the ghosts of loneliness, Teddy learned to sing. He sang funny songs, particularly old drinking songs. They were songs that made him laugh mid-chorus. It was great fun, and a few times he sang so loud that the neighbors filed a complaint.

Teddy didn't pull pranks. No, he loved people too much to risk the pleasure they took in his company. No, Teddy's sense of humor was vastly different from that of the Marauders and George Weasly. Hermoine said that his humor was entwined with his smooth words and charming smile.

"Surely it is a mixture of your parent's character," she said.

Teddy chuckled, and for a moment he forgot they were gone.

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**A/n:** I still don't like this drabble that much, not as much as the next few chapters. Oh well, review please! I'll have more up soon! Thank you reviewers! This fic has become a real pain in the butt...first it was spell check, then it was uploading issues, gods! Well, thanks anways! I appreciate it! 


	2. Kiss Slowly

A/n: I am truly sorry for everyone who had to deal with my aweful mistakes in the last chapter. I've gone through and fixed most of them. I am a terrible speller and without spellcheck I am doomed! This computer doesn't have spellcheck, so I appologize. It's much harder to catch these mistakes when you're so dependent on automatic spellers!

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**Kiss Slowly**

Until his dying day, Teddy never forgot his first true kiss. Before the child goddess, Victoire,Teddy did have experiance with lipworks. However, those kisses were all trivial dances compared to the mouth-music of goddess Victoire.

Victoire was indeed a young goddess, the sassy embodiment of grace, and beholder of eternal beauty. Her small figure was shapely and trim, arms long and slender, and she favored soft pink robes that sort of flared at the hem. Her hair was thin and soft, the color of red honey, and bone-straight except for on the ends, where the locks curled in perfect coils. And whenever she stepped into the sunlight, her alabaster skin shone with a most lustrous radiance.

How Victoire had come to love him, Teddy did not know.

Teddy was seventeen when he first fell face over toes for Victoire Weasly. It was in the final months of his education at Hogwarts, down at the Black Lake. He'd been sad for some reason (there were myriad reasons he could have been sad), although the memory of his first true kiss must have slayed all recolitions of dispair that day, because he could not recally why.

And as much as Teddy loved people, he'd found it difficult to accept their company that day.

Victoire seemed to have come out of nowhere. Without a word, she sat next to him and held out a chocolate popsicle. Teddy accepted it, giving her a curious look. The child goddess, two years Teddy's junior, stared out over the lake, sucking on the chocolate ice cream, eyes dancing in the afternoon glare.

Teddy remembered his dislike for the ice cream. The chocolate was far too rich, the almonds were soggy, and it made his saliva thick and sticky, and his throat pleaded for water. He kept quite though, because Victoire seemed to be enoying it and he didn't want her to think him ungrateful.

When she finished, she sighed heavily. "You're not happy," she said, like his dispair saddened her spirit. Her voice was a soft whisper in the wind. She spoke perfect English, despite her French heritage.

Teddy blinked. "What?"

"You're not happy," Victoire repeated. "Chocolate ice cream is supposed to make people happy." She studdied him, leaning in. "But not you, Teddy."

Then suddenly she leaned in and kissed him! It was a total, not that it was bad (Victoire's kisses were legendary!), but it was still a shock all the same. Her lips were cold, soft as pink rose petals, and her tongue tasted of frozen chocolate. It made Teddy's entire facade shudder with pure delight.

They parted slowly and Victoire smiled. "Are you happy now?"

Teddy stared at her, dumbfound. Then he gathered up his disorientated self, leaned back in the soft grass, and said, "Yeah, but not as happy as I'd like to be." He smiled. "Yet?"

Surely Bill would seek his blood when he discovered their flirting, but Teddy didn't care if it meant he got another slow, deep kiss from goddess Victoire...and another.

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**A/n**: this fluffy thign was fun to write, and I like this fic because drabbles are short and easy to write, yet most of them are merely pointless rambles. Yay for easyness! Review please! 


	3. Be Honest

**A/N: **This fic has been the biggest pain in my gludius maximus. Oh well. It's easy. is my favorite drabble thing I've written so far. I hope you enjoy it. Thanks again reviewers!

**Be Honest**

Conscious. To be aware. To be awake.

Teddy was for the most part, conscious of the people around him. He was aware of their moods, their thoughts, their hopes and dreams. He loved people, and did his best to be conscious of their feelings and reactions. This brought him a great understanding of society as a whole, and an even greater understanding of the individual.

Over summer break, Victoire came to him with a very serious question. "Teddy, you're honest," she said." Do you think…do you think I have," she gulped. "Apples?"

Teddy sat up on the sofa. "Sorry?"

Victoire blushed furiously, running her fingers self consciously over the front he her chest. "You know apples. That little brat, Scorpios said I have…apples. Do I?"

Oh gods! Teddy realized instantly with sudden, hot horror what Victoire meant by 'apples.'

_Don't talk about their breasts! _Ron's voice suddenly bellowed inside his head. _Don't talk about them, don't mention, STAY AWAY from that subject! Hermione has slapped me so many times—_

Teddy thought quickly about what to do. Victoire did not have 'apples' but they weren't exactly melons either. Teddy immediately recognized it as a typical girl trap.

If he said yes, he would be slapped and Victoire's feelings would be hurt. If he said no, she might think that she had less than apples, peaches perhaps? Or perhaps she would assume that he meant they were bigger than apples, like pumpkins or watermelons, and then she would think him a pig headed man. Plus, if Bill over heard him in the next room talking to his daughter about her 'fruit,' then Teddy may as well dig his own grave.

Either way, he was bound to be slapped or murdered for talking about her breasts.

Unless…

His lips quirked smartly as a new idea came to him.

"Oh yes, you've definitely got apples," he said playfully, reaching up to pinch Victoire's cheeks. "They're right here." He kissed both Victoire's cheeks, tasting the sweetness of her fruit. "Sweet, red apples."

At least he was honest.


	4. Let go of what you can't change

**Let Go of What You Can't Change**

Hugo looked worried. "Do you really think they'll disinherit us if we're not in Griffyndor?" he asked in a whisper so as not to be overheard by the grown ups.

Lily seemedonly slightly less distressed than her cousin. "Well," she whispered back. "Teddy still eats dinner at our house every week."

Teddy smiled, dishing up a spoonful of spiced corn. They didn't know that he could hear more clearly than most humans. Even over the clatter of knives and forks scraping against dinner plates, he could hear them as easily as if they were speaking loudly.

"And he was in Hufflepuff, right?" Lily went on. "So, they can't just disown us because we didn't make Griffyndor. Could they?"

Teddy leaned in, "Of course not." They were startled that he had overheard. "Besides, you don't want to end up in a place you don't belong. That's why Hogwarts has four houses, so that you can be in a place where you will most likely succeed and fit in. Trust me, the sorting hat has your best interest at heart."

Thos were the exact words of Harry, written long ago on the morning after Teddy was sorted into Hufflepuff. He had been so disapointed to not make the House of the only family he knew. Sure he'd been proud to know that his mother was a Hufflepuff, but he was already so much like her (so they said). He felt less like his father, and even less like Harry.

Sure enough, Harry had been right. He'd quickly found friends among the Hufflepuffs, and he did become a very successful student. It was no lie to say that Hufflepuff was a good place for him. Still, he was like a wolf among a pride of lions.

Still, it was one of those things that he could not change. He could change his entire physiology, sure, but he couldn't change his House, his fear of heights, or even his parent's deaths. He knew that if he did not let those things slip away, he would wallow in misery. And what would be the use of that?

He should worry about his job on the Night Bus, paying his rent, and of the child goddess, Victorie. He could not worry that he was not a Quiditch player like Harry and Ron, or that he was not an Auror like his mother.

Pushing those trivial pains aside, Teddy said to them both, "And should you end up in a different house, then you join me in my rebellious legion of non-Gryffindor! That'll show Ron, won't it?"

Hugo and Lily both laughed, their troubles momentarily forgotten.

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**A/n:** I thought that Teddy should be a Hufflepuff like Tonks because it would divide him from the Potters and the Weasly's, and his fear of heights would seperate him even further from Harry and all the Weaslys that played Quiditch (no idea how to spell that) in school. 


	5. Relax when you must

**A/n: **Aw, yes. Once more you guys get to listen to me babble a bit. Thanks for the reviews!

**Relax When You Must**

Few wizards had ever truly mastered the art of relaxation, but Teddy was an expert. He was, as Harry often put it, a disciplined pupil of quality leisure. Relaxation was vital to one's happiness. Without it , Teddy would have been a stress maniac years ago.

So, there were several chief sites where Teddy particularly enjoyed relaxation.

His first choice was Harry's living room, particularly in the giant, flannel armchair. Usually when he came over for dinner, he had to make up some absurd excuse as to why he couldn't be eating at home (Harry and Ginny would have invited him anyways, but the excuses made him feel less guilty about his loneliness).

The truth was, he couldn't stand eating alone, seven nights a week in the creepy little flat he reluctantly referred to as 'home.' Who could blame him for wanting to eat with his only family?

After dinner, he'd usually slump into the old arm chair, stomach bulging, and listen to Ginny tell her children the tales of Harry's years at Hogwarts. Who said you had to grow up entirely at nineteen?

Teddy's second choice for relaxing was the Potter's couch.

His third was under the maple tree in Andromeda's old backyard.

Even in times of great conflict, when Teddy's finances seemed to be rolling down the hill; through threats of eviction, and the occasional job loss, Teddy found time to sit down and enjoy a good book, or splurge on a random ice cream.

At school, he had relaxed in the Hufflepuff Common Room in a giant armchair near the cackling fire, sometimes in the company of Hufflepuff girl (_before_ the child goddess, Victoire).

As an adult of nineteen years Teddy enjoyed babbling with his friends over a chilled glass of butterbeer, or even a bottle of firewisky.

Oddly, on Christmas, Teddy found the best way to relax was to help Grandma Weasly with clean up. It was their tradition to talk and wind down over dirty, abandon dishes while the rest of the family went about their own thing. Best of all, Molly Weasly insisted that Teddy call her 'Grandma.' It was a resolute privilege that even Ron and his brothers hadn't thought of.

It made him feel like he was truly apart of the family.

Sometimes on Sunday evenings, Teddy would sit back with a cup of tea and listen to a Quidditch game broadcasted on his father's old radio. Usually, he fell asleep before the Seeker captured the Snitch.

The one spot, though, that Teddy enjoyed above all else, was only available on summer and winter holidays. It was in the tender arms of child goddess Victoire.

The availability of that sacred place, though, seemed to make it all the more special.


	6. Avoid BS

**Avoid Bullshit**

Teddy couldn't help the laugh, even though it made Victoire scowl. "The goddess Victoire has never danced before." He laughed again. "Why do those words ring like blasphemy?"

"It's not funny Teddy," Victoire said, kicking at the snow. "I tried to dance at Aunt Gabriella's wedding, but Dad said, 'Victoire, come help your grandmother with those boxes.' He couldn't stand to see me dancing with a boy, though he denied it entirely."

"So he starved you of your education," Teddy said. He looked around the garden, scanning the shadows, but his superb vision found there was no sign of Bill. "He can't deny you of it now, can he?"

Victoire looked at him curiously. "I suppose I _am _seventeen." She smiled, taking his hand, and laced her slender fingers around his, and then placed the other on his shoulder.

There was no music, only the sound of muffled sounds of laughter and chatter from inside the Burrow where the Christmas part was being held. Together they moved around the garden in a classic three-step rhythm, kicking up powered snow and laughing as they went. One of the garden gnomes tried to grab Victoire's ankle, but Teddy kicked it square in the nose, sending it across the lawn, and they swayed on.

"Are you still working on the Knight Bus?"

Teddy smiled. "Of course I am," he said. "I love that job. I get free lunch at the station, and I've met so many interesting people—"

"Everyone's convinced you're going to go become an Auror some day," she whispered, almost apologetically. "They say that you're wasting your abilities."

Teddy stopped moving, and for a long moment he said nothing. How many times had people asked if he was going into the Auror program? How many times had he tried to explain that he had no interest in it?

"They're wrong," Teddy said finally. "I am not my mother. She was a brave woman, yes, and I miss her very much. But I don't have to be _just_ like her. I am happy with what I'm doing, and Harry said that's what my parents wanted."

They resumed their three-step routine, but Teddy's innards were tied up in bitterness.

He said, swelling resentment, "Who are _they _to decide what I should be doing with my abilities, when they don't even understand what I can do? They should…mind their own faces!"

"I know," Victoire said. "I'm just telling you what everyone thinks."

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "I don't want to you be an Auror anyways," she said softly.

Her confession surprised Teddy. "Why not?"

"Because, you're right, Teddy. It's not you. The Auror thing was your mother's occupation. Yeah, you'd be a damn good Auror, but it's not what you enjoy. Plus, it's dangerous. You're safer on the Knight Bus." She released him from her embrace, laid a cold mitten on his cheek. "And you're just so naturally happy that taking up a career that you have no interest in, you would you seem so…out of character.

"At least _someone _understands me."

"Harry understands too," Victoire said. "He told someone off at the Ministry for it. Albus told me about it."

"Harry did that?"

Victoire laughed. "He's very good at straightening people out, Teddy. So, keep doing what you enjoy. We just want to see you happy." She paused and then whispered a warning, "And _don't_ talk with my father alone. James spilled his guts to everyone about us, and Dad's never been pleased with me dating. Of course, I don't think it'll help that he's known you since you were in dippers!"

The night was filled Teddy's mirth. He was only a drop unnerved. Avoiding bullshit was as easy.

**A/n:** Please don't be miffed that I didn't make Teddy an Auror. I didn't want to make him _too_ much like Tonks. He needs some independence! Anyways, thanks for the reviews!


	7. A litte bit of bad is okay

**A Little Bit of Bad is Okay**

"Where is he?" Teddy asked, waiting to the board the Hogwarts Express home. He clutched the folded parchment to his chest.This would be the last time he ever set foot on the Hogwats Express as a student.

"Who knows," said Victoire. "What do you want with James?"

Teddy didn't answer. As much as he was head over heels for child goddess Victoire, it wasn't any of her business. He wanted to give James the parchment before leaving Hogwarts for good. Teddy hoped he hadn't already bordered the train.

Finally he spotted James amongst a group of chattering friends. "James!"

James whirled around. He gave Teddy an impatient look. "Get over here!" Teddy called. "God," he said to Victoire. "He should be on his hands and knees for me giving this to him. JAMES!"

James stormed over. "What?" he demanded, storming over to Victoire and Teddy. "Do you have any idea what'll happen if I'm seen conversing with a _Hufflepuff_? Me? A brave and ever proud Gryffindor?"

It was a joke. Something Teddy would only let James kid about. He was more impatient from being interrupted more than anything.

"Well, excuse me," Teddy said. "But I'm finished with Hogwarts, this being my last year and all, and I have something I'd like to pass on to you."

"What would a Gryffindor want with something from the hands of a _Hufflepuff_?"

"Again with the Hufflepuff jokes," Teddy sighed. He seized James by the arm and dragged him off, giving Victoire a be-right-back wink.

"What are you doing Teddy?"

Teddy dragged him behind a tree and unfolded the old parchment. He handed it to an annoyed James. "Here."

James looked at the empty parchment. "You dragged me back here for an old piece of paper?"

"It's not just any piece of parchment." He drew out his wand, tapped it on the empty document, and vowed, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." It was true. Revealing the Marauder's Map to James was indeed an act of mischief itself.

"This is a map of Hogwarts," Teddy said as the map revealed itself. "It was made by my father, your grandfather, and Sirius and Peter. It shows all of Hogwarts and where everybody is. Use it for whatever mischief you will, but _don't _tell Harry I gave this to you."

James stared at the map. His eyes sparkled, thinking of all the strife he cause. "They used this to pull pranks," James said. "Dad told me all about it…Granddad Potter and the Marauders, _your _dad too!" He looked up at Teddy suspiciously. "What has a goody-goody _Hufflepuff_ been using it for? You've _never _pulled a prank in your saintly life!"

Teddy smiled. "I'm not _that_ holier-than-thou, James. I have had my share of rule breaking, minuscule as it was. I was just too clever to get caught, most of the time, that is."

"What'd you do?"

"Well, I've only snuck into the other two Houses." James gapped and Teddy was careful to leave out that he had snuck into Gryffindor Common Room masquerading as a member of the House to 'talk' with Victoire. There were some other things he didn't dare reveal. "Once we did take vengeance on Filch, and I've impostered quite a few teachers, snooped about the school at night, breached the restricted section in the library," He paused, frowning. "I'm afraid I _am _a little too saintly to follow completely in my parent's footsteps!"

James didn't seem to believe his petty confession. "_You _broke that many rules! That's nothing compared to what Harry and Ron have done — what _I've _done — but _still!_"

Teddy smiled. "James, a _little_ bit of bad is okay," he said. "Just a little."

Tapping the map with his wand, he uttered, "Mischief mannaged." Then he folded the legendary Marauder's Map and passed it onto James.

Mischief managed.


	8. Forgive Easily

**Forgive Easily**

Victoire had always said that he was too forgiving. That may have been true, actually.

He had, after all, laid out his best friend clear across Honeydukes for talking ill of werewolves.

One of the girls screamed as Teddy's fellow Hufflepuff was sent smash into a stand of Honeydukes' finest chocolate. The storeowner was immediately aroused, but Teddy ignored his shouts of protest and focused only on his guilty charge.

Perhaps by the grace of the ever patient Helga Hufflepuff, Teddy was able to tame his rage to a manageable level. He said with such smooth coldness, "My father was a werewolf from the time he was bitten as a child to the day he died. He died fighting in the final battle helping Harry Potter. He was very brave and kind, and I am proud to be his son. You will _not_ insult him, or anyone like him."

Teddy watched his friend's shamed face; he was appalled that his own friend would say such arrogant, hurtful words. He knew that Tom was very sorry, but still, a part of him did not want to forgive. _Should _he forgive Tom?

Yet, who was he to _not_ forgive? The way Teddy saw it, it was the werewolves who had every right not to forgive. They had a damned good reason hate normal Wizarding society. They'd been treated so poorly, why would— why _should—_ they show any loyalty to the people who feared and recoiled from the curse they had no control over? Who denied them jobs and decent wages? Who considered them less than human? It was wrong, so very wrong.

Without another word, Teddy stormed out of Honeydukes.

"Teddy!"

Someone was calling his name as he stormed through the little streets of Hogsmede. He didn't bother to respond.

"Hey, Ted!"

Teddy whirled around. He could feel the fury slipping out of isolation, out of its iron cage. He spoke only with his eyes, glaring at his curly haired friend who appeared to be out of breath. Tom's nose looked a little bit longer, redder, than before Teddy had punched it.

"I'm sorry," Tom blurted. "I didn't know your Pop was a werewolf. I'm real sorry."

"No, you're not," Teddy said. "You're only sorry because you referred to my father and everyone like him as a mangy animal. You're not sorry that because of people like _you_ werewolves are treated less than human. You are _not _sorry that my father was treated so poorly. God, Tom, they're out there starving and jobless and you wonder why they hate—people like _you_? An injustice anywhere, is an injustice everywhere!"

Tom winced. "Look, I'm really sorry. If you don't want to talk to me ever again, I understand. I didn't realize all those things you said—"

"How about a butterbeer?"

"What?"

Teddy sighed. He was sure that if his father were alive, he would want Teddy to forgive his friend. After all, friends were like gold. That much he knew from the tales of the infamous Marauders. But still, Teddy held his father in high regards. He was proud of everything his father was, fur, teeth, and all, and he couldn't stand to listen to anyone degrade his glory.

Nonetheless, his father would have wanted him to forgive his friend's ignorance. People didn't recognize the harm they did with their blasted prejudice. It was the right thing to do, to take mercy on Tom for his ignorance.

"I said, how about a butterbeer?"

Tom looked like he had just tried to swallow a boulder and it had gotten stuck in his mouth. "But— You mean, you're just going to forgive me? Like that? _Why?_"

"That's what I said rock-brain," Teddy said. He was only slightly agitated now. He was regaining his patience.

"But I snubbed your _father!_" Tom cried. "You should at least not talk to me for a week! That's what normal people do! Hell, I don't think a werewolf would ever forgive me!"

"Depends on who you said it to. My father would have forgiven you, probably, but that Grayback fellow would have easily eaten you. My mother most certainly would have kicked your ass." Teddy picked at a turquoise lock of hair. "And in case you haven't noticed, Tom, I am _far _from normal. Come on, let's have a drink."

Tom still looked like he hadn't yet managed to swallow that boulder in his mouth. "You serious, mate?"

"Are you coming or what?"

"…Yeah."

"You can buy, okay?"

"Of course, Ted. I'm really sorry."

They picked their way through the Hogsmede, friends once again. What did Victoire think she was talking about? Forgiveness was hardly an easy thing to accept.

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**A/n: **I doubt Tom will ever show up in this fic again. I just needed him for this little forgiveness piece, since none of Harry's relatives or kids would have said such a thing about werewolves. So, sorry Tom. Thanks for the reviews! 


	9. Play Hard, Play Fair

**Play Hard, Play Fair**

Something poked him in the stomach. A finger? Perhaps, but Teddy was too far under the sleeping spell of Ginny's turkey dinner to really care.

Then he heard Ron's voice through the foggy darkness of his half sleep. "You see, kids, I told you Hufflepuffs were big softies."

Another poke. "Go on, see for yourself."

Someone timidly jabbed a finger into his stomach. He heard giggles, and this was followed by a series of more confident jabs. Teddy groaned. Why couldn't they just leave him alone?

"You see? Now, us Gryffindors on the other hand are made of solid steel."

Teddy's eyes flew open. The turkey's sleeping spell was broken at last. Ron grinned down at him. Teddy only allowed Ron and James to crack silly Hufflepuff jokes, but perhaps it was time at last to teach Ron a lesson?

"Us Gryffindors aren't soft and plushy like little Teddy here," said Ron. "Just one more reason to be in Gryffindor, right kidos?" He poked Teddy again.

Yes, it was definitely time to end this. Nine and a half years he had put up with Ron's Hufflepuff jokes! Like lightening, Teddy shot up, and tackled Ron. He put Ron in a firm headlock and, pressing a knee into Ron's back, forced him to his knees. Teddy took extra care, though, not to hurt him. "Soft and plushy!" he demanded, trying not to laugh. "Am I soft and plushy now, _Ronnie_?"

Hugo and Lily laughed.

"Get off of me!"

"We Hufflepuffs are quite mean under our _soft and plushy _fur coats," Teddy went on as Ron struggled to get free, but his resistance was to no avail. "Did you know that a badger has the strength to fight off bears and wolves?" He gave Ron a playful shake. "And apparently we can take on little Gryffindor kitties too!"

"You're strangling me!" This was preceded with a chorus of vulgar curses, which proved that Ron could easily suck air for his lungs.

"Am I playing too rough for you, kitty?"

"I am not a bloody kitten!"

Lily and Hugo were all but rolling on the floor.

Then, Hermoine and Harry came bursting into the living room. Apparently they'd heard all the racket and vulgar curses from the kitchen.

Harry saw that Teddy had his best friend in an inescapable headlock. He frowned and crossed his arms. "Teddy, what are you doing?"

Teddy smiled. "Teaching Ronnie about Hufflepuffs," he said. "But all I'm hearing is 'meow, meow!' So I don't know if he's getting it or not."

"Will you get off of me?"

"Are you going to wake me up again?"

Hermoine rolled her eyes. "Serves you right, Ron," she said with a half smile. "Didn't anyone tell you not to cross a sleeping badger?"

"Curiosity killed the kitten," said Teddy.

Harry laughed.

"Will you stop the bloody cat jokes?" Ron demanded. "And _let me up, damn it!_"

"Let him up, Ted," Harry said. "He's had enough, I think."

Teddy shrugged and freed Ron.

"Maybe this will teach you to stop those stupid House rivalries," Hermoine said sharply while Ron struggled to his feet. "Just because the three of us were Gryffindors, doesn't mean everyone else is damned if they're not."

Ron scowled, muttered a few more cursed and then stormed into the kitchen.

"I think I hurt his feline pride," Teddy said, suddenly feeling very guilty. Teddy really didn't want Ron to be mad when he had only been playing. He sighed. "I'll go apologize."

He found Ron in the kitchen, downing a bottle of butterbeer. "Ron," he said, "I'm sorry."

Ron lowered the amber bottle and gave Teddy a strange look. He shook his head. "You're funny."

"I mean it."

Why wasn't Ron as angry as he had been a moment ago?

"So do I, Ted," Ron said. "You're real funny. I mean, in a 'ha-ha' kind a way. Well, you _are_ a little weird too, but you know what I mean."

"You're not mad?"

"Naw," Ron said, taking another swig of butterbeer. "I like our 'rivalry.' It's fun. Even though you _did _humiliate me in front of my own son and niece!"

"You had the nerve to wake me up like that!"

Ron rubbed his neck sorely. "You know, I didn't realize you were thatstrong," he said. "How come you didn't you play Quidditch? You'd have been a great beater. Hufflepuff _might_ have stood a chance. _Maybe._"

Teddy shook his head. "I'm scared spit dry of heights. I'd sooner let my loose House miserably to Gryffindor than get on a broomstick!"

"That's a shame." Ron poured him a glass of butterbeer and raised the bottle. "To rivalry?"

"To rivalry," Teddy laughed.

**A/n:** This was fun to write. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Thanks reviewers!


	10. Drink it Down

**Drink It Down**

The wine, cool and sweet, tingled at the tip of his tongue. He felt the river of sweet liqueur slither down soft tissues in his throat, warming the lining in his stomach. He drank it slowly, savoring cold tang.

Then he noticed that Fleur was watching him. She had stopped slicing the vegetables. "You looked like your father, just zen," she said. "'E used to drink wine. 'E loved good wine."

Teddy blinked, lowering the glass slowly. He hadn't expected that. "Did he drink a lot?"

It only occurred to him how that question must have sounded _after _the words slipped over his lips.

Fleur laughed. "Only at dinner, zat I ever saw," she said. "But 'e did 'ave a drink with us ze day you were born. 'E was so 'appy!"

Relieved, Teddy smiled and took another sip.

"At least I am a little bit like him," he said.

He didn't mean for Fleur to hear.

"You are more like 'im zan most think," she said, continuing to dice the vegetables into perfect little squares. "Your mother was the silliest girl I ever met—"

"Hey!"

"But she loved you father so much." She smiled. "'E was polar opposite."

Warm arms wrapped around his neck. "Red and blue makes purple," said Victoire in his ear. She kissed him on the cheek. "Purple is my favorite color."


	11. Take Care of Others

**A/n:** I couldn't help it. I loved the thought of Ted having a funny looking owl. So, here's to funny looking friends! Cheers!

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**Take Care of Others**

It was a funny looking owl.

Its white feathers were blotchy with large black spots, and it looked sort of like a goose. Well, it had a long neck and a prominently pointed face, as if someone had run the poor creature over with a Muggle car. It had one giant yellow eye, and the other was diminutive, black and beady.

Unlike all the other owls, when this one opened its flattened beak, it screeched a most

bizarre sound, crossed between a hoot and a honk.

In sum, the bird was so damn ugly, so pitifully uncanny, that it was just flat out cool

Teddy knew instantly this deformed thing was supposed to be _his_ owl.

It was strange, just like him. Everyone said Teddy was a bit odd in one way or another, probably because of his shape shifting. There were times when he lost control over his appearance, which usually resulted in embarrassing features.

Teddy instantly felt a strong relation to the uncanny bird.

He turned to Harry. "Please Harry?" he begged. "May I have this one? You said any one I wanted."

Harry's expression betrayed his true feelings. "Ted—"

"I _know_ it's funny looking," Teddy said quickly. "But that's why I like it. I mean, how many owls out there are like this one? It's totally bizarre!"

The bird in the cage hopped around on it's stunted legs, desperately crying "Hoonk, hoonk!" as if to agree with Teddy.

"See, Harry? It _needs _a home!"

"Teddy, I don't even know if it's an owl."

"It's an owl Harry," Teddy said, determined not to loose this battle. "You're just saying that because it's ugly."

"Yeah, but can it fly? I'm not buying you an owl that can't fly."

The owl flapped its giant splotchy wings. "Hoonk, hoonk!"

"See, Harry? It wants to be friends!"

Harry winced. "Ted, it just— it's butt ugly. Are you sure you want it? Ron's gonna make fun of you for the rest of your life, and your fellow classmates—"

"I get made fun of at school anyways," Teddy said sharply. "My hair is a different color every day, and sometimes I wake up with my eye on the front of my lip. Trust me, Harry, I can hack it. _Please?"_

It was obvious that Harry was still reluctant. Begging by itself wasn't enough. It was time to initiate Plan B. "_Hermoine_ _says_ that we should take care of things that are different," Teddy said. "Even if they are mean and nasty, or gross looking, everyone deserves to have friends, right?"

That did it. Harry caved. Teddy knew he was triumphant the moment his godfather heaved a heavy sigh.

"God, Ted, if you want it bad enough to pull a 'Hermoine says' on me, I suppose it _is _your birthday."

"Yes!"

"Hoonk!"

When they brought the owl cage up to the clerk's desk, the lady looked at the three of them with utter amazement. "Are you kidding me?" she shrieked.

The owl flapped its wings and did a funny bopping dance. "Hoonk!"

"It _is _an owl, right?" Harry asked.

"Oh…oh! Yes, yes, it is an owl," she said. "Been that way since it hatched." The shopkeeper still seemed dazed, but she quickly lowered the price, once and then twince, and then decided to toss in a bag of owl feed.

Finally, after all was said and paid for, Teddy walked out of the shop, bearing the brass cage of his giant feather friend with as much pride as any second year purchasing his first owl. He'd already had a name for it.

"Goose?"

"He looks, like a goose, don't you think?" Teddy asked.

"That silly thing? Yeah, I suppose it does, doesn't it?"

Yes, Goose was a strange creature, but in Teddy's heart he knew he had done right in giving Goose a good home. Everybody deserved to have friends and certainly everybody deserved to be taken care of, even funny looking owls. Harry said that his father would have been proud, which made Teddy even happier.

"Hoonk!"

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**A/n: **It was stupid, but I liked Goose and apparently so did Ted! Whatever. Review.


	12. Not Really Alone

**A/n: **This is probably the last drabble that I'm going to write for this fic. College starts today! BOOYA! Thanks to everyone who reviewed. I love you all!

**Not Really Alone**

Someone once asked if it bothered him that his father had not entirely rejoiced at the news of a son. They were curious to know that if it plagued him at all knowing that Remus had attempted to leave his wife and son behind. Teddy had learned it by accident, and years later the question still caught him off guard.

He stopped what he was doing, lifted his gaze into the summer night, and sighed.

"It used to," he admitted. "It used to bother me a great deal." He paused, feeling the soft glow of the waxing moon caress his skin. The silver light sent a cool, lively buzz down his spine.

"But then I think about all the people in this world who were created by accident." He smiled soaking, in the loving glow. "And I then I realize that I'm not alone after all. People say and do things out of fear. You can't really hold it against them. I am fortunate that my father loved me enough to come back."

How impressed they were by his wise words.

Teddy laughed. "Wise?" he said. "No, it's just a comforting thought."

Above the half filled moon cut silently into the night, cradled in a blanket of a thousand twinkling diamonds. He wasn't really alone. Not really.


End file.
